Worcester plans recycling pilot program

Monday

Jun 17, 2013 at 6:00 AMJun 17, 2013 at 12:57 PM

By Nick Kotsopoulos TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

Looking for a way to increase residential waste recycling and reduce recycling litter in neighborhoods, the city wants to begin a two-year pilot program in which selected households would be asked to place their recyclables in clear plastic bags instead of bins.

To carry out the pilot program, public works officials are recommending that the city's current recycling collection contract with Casella Waste Systems be extended for two years, from July 1 through June 30, 2015.

Robert L. Moylan Jr., commissioner of public works and parks, said Casella Waste Systems is singularly qualified to run the pilot program because it has been collecting curbside recyclables in the city since 2008.

The company also owns and operates the material recovery facility where all Worcester's recycling collection materials are taken and processed.

“There is no other recycling collection contractor within the collection area with the experience and the ability to collect and accept for processing, recycling materials brought in a plastic bagged format,” Mr. Moylan wrote in a report that goes before the City Council Tuesday night.

Mr. Moylan said the pilot program will take place in five different areas in the city to determine if clear bags should be considered for citywide recycling.

Each area will consist of 250 to 300 housing units and will include single-family and multi-family dwellings. The commissioner said each pilot study will last for about three months and be done during various seasons to determine if weather affects the results.

Meanwhile, each household in the pilot areas will also receive informational materials and a survey developed by the city and Casella, as well as a roll of 25 clear bags for recycling — about 40,000 clear bags will be needed for the pilot program, he said.

“The goal of the program is to make it easier for residents to recycle, increase the residential recycling rate, reduce recycling litter in the neighborhoods and increase efficiency in recycling collection,” Mr. Moylan said.

When the city began its curbside recycling program in the early 1990s, residents had to separate their recyclables into paper, plastic and glass and place them in different bins for curbside collection. Residents put all other waste in yellow trash bags for weekly curbside collection by the city.

The city went to “zero sort recycling” a few years ago, when Casella Waste Systems took over the city's curbside recycling program. Under that system, all recyclables can be placed in one collection container.

Mr. Moylan said that made recycling easier and more convenient, and produced higher rates of recycling. But one of the problems with the bins is that they are open and there are times when the materials in them can be blown out, creating litter in neighborhoods.

About one third of the residential waste generated in the city is recycled. Residents have to pay a per-bag fee to have their waste picked up by the city, but there is no fee charged for recycling.

Mr. Moylan said the clear plastic bags to be used for recycling will be 33 gallons each and they will be paid for and provided by Casella.

He said Casella will weigh recyclables in the weeks before, during and after the clear bag recycling pilot program to determine recycling tonnages.

The company will also evaluate whether recycling-type litter along the streets in the pilot area has been reduced through the use of the bags.

Mr. Moylan said participants in the pilot areas will also be asked to fill out a survey where they can offer their opinions on the use of the clear bags for recycling. Those who complete the survey will receive a $10 gift card from Casella for Dunkin' Donuts.

“The five pilot recycling programs will take 18 months to complete, which will leave three months to evaluate the program results and to determine whether the next five-year collection contract will include clear bag recycling,” the commissioner said.

No date has been set for the start of the pilot program, nor has the city decided which areas will be included.